According to Maersk, digital twins have huge potential to help design, visualise, monitor, optimise, and maintain assets more effectively. For this reason, the company describes four ways digital twins will shake up logistics.
As Maersk noted, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) says digital twins are now one of the most promising technologies linked to Industry 4.0.
Today, the global digital twin market has reached a value of over USD 5 billion, according to market research group Fact.MR. By 2033, it is expected to be worth USD 95 billion, representing an impressive compound annual growth rate (CARG) of 34%.
4 ways supply chain digital twins will transform logistics
#1 Optimising layout and design at every stage of the supply chain
The digital twin allows for existing and new processes to be modelled, explored, and tested – without ever needing to make any changes in the real world.
Taking for example a warehouse, a digital twin can test the addition and interaction of different technologies and software. This can include robots, counting systems, and automated storage and retrieval systems.
The digital twin can draw on information from sensors and data from simulations. It can test and improve the layout of the physical warehouse, refining and optimising its operation
Maersk said.
It can identify and remove inefficiencies and optimise the working of the warehouse. The digital twin can also be used where a physical or real-world asset does not yet exist.
#2 Being prepared for anything with digital twin solutions
To date, logistics has relied largely on descriptive analytics and, to an extent, diagnostic analytics. Digital twins can facilitate predictive analytics and prescriptive analytics.
In other words, digital twins can help move from being reactive to proactive. They can dramatically improve the quality of decision-making and supply chain planning
#3 Switching to predictive maintenance and repair
Digital twin technology can also help move towards predictive maintenance. Businesses benefit from essential equipment operating at peak efficiency.
To date, many businesses relied on either corrective maintenance when an issue arose or preventive maintenance where they estimated the life cycle of individual parts and conducted maintenance before a failure.
#4 Improving sustainability thanks to digital twins
Digital twins solutions can also help reduce the environmental impact and make supply chains more sustainable. According to a recent survey by Oxford Economics, this is a goal for 73% of company executives worldwide.
